The Hours You're Awake
by allikat5
Summary: Sequel to The Sleepless Ones. Cody and Ted try to have a normal relationship while Cody continues to struggle with his night terrors. Randy loses someone and gains someone. John and Hunter get pulled along for the ride.
1. Chapter 1

Disclamier: Yep. Disclaimed.

Two weeks, Ted thinks. Two weeks since he told Cody that he loves him. He wonders if it was selfish of him to think that his confession would fix everything; that Cody would automatically be okay and they would live happily ever after.

Unfortunately, life just doesn't work that way.

So he lies in yet another hotel bed and watches as Cody sleeps peacefully for once next to him. Even though the closed eyelids with dark lashes, Ted can picture the clear blue eyes that he loves to stare into and in his heart he regrets that it took so long for him to realize that. But at this point even someone as clueless as Ted can understand that Cody is still suffering.

He thinks back to that night, all those years ago, when Cody broke down in front of him for the first time, and his instinct had kicked in. Protect Cody at all costs; that was all he could think and from that day on that was all he did. And now that they're even closer, he can do his job even better.

His mind is racing and he can't sleep, there's no way. He can only think about the multitude of events that have occurred to them in the past few weeks. Like when he first told Randy and John what had happened. Lying wasn't really part of the plan.

Okay, so he hadn't lied as much as he'd left out some key information. No need to tell them that one of the most beloved men in the history of the WWE is a rapist. Even as he thinks it, Ted's hands clench and he wonders if everyone should know; if Ric's life should be ruined, if his name should be mud because of what he did.

Yes, it should. But it won't happen.

His brain finally stops sabotaging him when Cody rolls towards him and snuggles into his chest. Ted places an arm around his waist and pulls him closer, trying to still his thoughts and concentrate on the feeling of Cody's warm body against his. It works.

It's still a little while before he falls asleep, but at least when he finally does, it's knowing that the love of his life is lying right there with him.

Tonight is RAW and they still have two more weeks on the road before any of the superstars are going to be able to go home for a while. So when Cody and Ted drag themselves out of bed sometime around noon, all they want to do is find food and then go back to sleep before they have to be at the arena for the show.

At least that's what Ted wants to do as they head down to the restaurant in the lobby. He never knows when Cody is going to want to eat these days; the times he actually does being few and far between. It's not good for him at all, but for the life of him Ted can't figure out what to do about it.

They see John sitting at a table alone reading a newspaper and they quickly join him. He puts down the paper and offers them a smile and a hello. Ted responds in kind, but Cody just nods and doesn't say anything.

The waitress working the room must have a sensory ability because she's right there, asking the newcomers what they would like to eat. She's an older woman who writes down Ted's order with a smile, but frowns when Cody shakes his head and looks away when Ted nudges him.

Walking away she decides to at least bring the sad looking boy some food, his gaunt appearance bringing out her motherly instincts. In the kitchen she puts in Ted's order and also requests a small stack of pancakes. One cook begins to complain that it's too late for pancakes, but she silences him with a glare and he goes back to work without a word.

She starts to round the room, refilling water glasses while at the same time watching the three men at the far table. They're the wrestlers staying at the hotel, she's been seeing them for the past few days, but this skinny one is new sight to her. Okay, so you can't save everyone, but this boy is in her restaurant, she can at least try.

Heading back into the kitchen, she picks up the food and heads back to their table. The sad one looks at her confusedly when she sets the pancakes down in front of him.

"Just in case," she smiles and he actually smiles back a bit. And for a while after that, she goes about her job, all the while keeping an eye on their table. She can't help but smile some more when she sees him start to pick at the plate in front of him. He nibbles on a piece of dry pancake, then slowly begins to eat more and more.

By the time the three wrestlers leave the restaurant, half the pancakes are gone. A job well done today, she thinks.

John invites himself up to Cody and Ted's room, claiming he's bored out of his mind and until the show starts he needs to be entertained. When they get through the door, John is about to sit down the closet bed when he stops and seems to be contemplating something.

"Wait, which bed were you guys in?"

It seems like it would be an innocent question but both Cody and Ted blush matching red and Ted stutters out, "We didn't . . . we haven't . . ."

John smiles and waves away Ted's attempt at speaking, but as Ted and Cody settle in on one bed and John on the other to watch some television, Ted starts to think again.

It's true. He and Cody haven't slept together. No need to rush things, he thinks, their relationship is so new and neither of them really know what they're doing. And sometimes it's just hard to be close to Cody because he gets nervous easily and Ted hates it because he wants them to be close. He wants to take their relationship to another level, but he can't even think about when he might have that chance.

Ted also notices that John keeps looking at them out of the corner of his eye and a small smile passes his lips. He is so incredibly thankful that they have John and Randy - wherever he is, probably the hotel gym – to support them.

They lounge around like this until it's time to leave for the arena. The last few shows had gone smoothly and tonight doesn't call to be any different. Ted and Cody have a big match, where they are to face off against Hunter and come out victorious. It seems as if everything should go as planned, right?

Not right.

The match is nearing its end when Hunter plants Cody to the mat with a huge spinebuster. Cody is supposed to regain his footing and continue on with a few moves but instead he just lies there on the mat, breathing harshly and grimacing in pain. Ted's heart stops for a moment because it appears that Cody is really hurt, while Hunter does his flexing thing to buy a few seconds.

Cody's eyes are wide open and wild looking and Ted knows that if Cody's in pain right now, it's not physical. He's not going to be able to finish this match.

Ted jumps into the ring, not worrying about making a visible tag and the referee plays along, by acting as if his back was turned. Hunter faces off with Ted and Cody has enough sense left to pull himself under the bottom rope and slide to the floor. He sits leaning against the steel stairs and pulls his knees to his chest. He closes his eyes, not wanting to see the fans looking down at him with jeering smiles on their faces and crude insults on their lips.

All he can think about is sweat and bare skin and hands on his body.

He barely registers the sound of the bell ringing, Lillian proclaiming Legacy the winners, and walking back up the ramp, Ted helping him every step of the way. Hunter meets them in the back and he thinks they're talking to him, but everything is blurry and muffled. He doesn't even hear the sound of finely polished dress shoes approaching. But he does hear one thing.

"We need to talk."


	2. Chapter 2

"Dibiase, put the kid down before he keels over."

Ted helps Cody sit down on the floor, his back leaning against a wall. His eyes still looks a bit glazed and he is still breathing heavily. Turning their attention from Cody, Ted and Hunter look back up at their boss, Vince McMahon.

"Would _somebody_ like to explain to me what just happened out there?"

Now Vince is not as big of an asshole as his on screen persona would imply. He cares about his employees and their well being, but he still has a business to run. All the same, Ted really doesn't want to have this discussion, right here, right now while Cody is still freaking out.

He's about to say this when Hunter cuts him off, "Vince, let's go somewhere to talk, okay?"

The oldest man just looks back at Cody and Ted before he nods and gestures for the three wrestlers to follow him. It's a bit of a struggle to get Cody to his feet, but once they do, it's a short walk to a room in the arena that Vince had been using as a make shift office. Cody sits on a chair situated in the corner and leaves Ted and Hunter to do the talking.

"He's been having some emotional issues lately. It's really complicated," Hunter offers as an explanation.

Vince raises an eyebrow, "Well has ihe/i spoken to anyone about these issues?"

Hunter looks to Ted who shakes his head sadly and says quietly, "We tried to get him to but . . ."

He doesn't really know what else to say; it's strange talking about Cody as if he's not there.

"Well I'm going to insist on it. Cody?" Vince sounds a bit gentler now, "You're going to talk to a psychologist I keep on staff. The sessions are going to be mandatory, scheduled by me."

Cody seems almost too ashamed to meet his boss' eyes and doesn't look up; doesn't acknowledge that he's being spoken to.

"I'm willing to work with you on this if you agree to get help, but if these incidents continue to occur and you don't try to do anything about it, there will be no place for you in this company."

That's all it takes for Cody to nod his head in agreement, horrified at the thought of losing his place in the WWE. It was everything he had ever worked for and if he didn't do it, this could be the end of his life with his friends, the end of his time with Ted.

"I'll . . . I'll do it," he squeaks out, struggling not to cry in front of Vince and for a moment it almost seems as if a look of pity crosses the old man's face.

"Okay," Vince states, "Cody, the first session is going to be tomorrow. I'll call you with the time and place. Now you three go rest; it's been a long night."

"Amen to that," Ted gathers up Cody and leads him from the room, eager to get the younger man back to the quiet of their hotel room.

It's not until the next afternoon that Randy shows up at their door and says that Vince has called him instead, insisting that he be in charge of taking Cody to and from the psychologist to make sure that he goes.

Ted is a little offended, but understands how Vince would want Randy to watch Cody, especially as he is not aware of the two younger men's relationship with one another. But still, it kind of hurts as he watches Cody trail out the door after Randy, throwing a pleading look back at Ted before the door closes.

He knows there is no way he can just stay in the room now because the entire time that Cody is gone he's going to be fretting. So he heads to the gym for a workout, they have a house show the next day and he has to at least put on the pretense of being amped up.

The psychologist has been put up in another hotel and when they get there, Randy leads Cody to an empty conference room that the hotel manager has granted them the use of. The doctor stands when they enter the room; he's an older man, in his fifties maybe, and he's wearing a conservative dress shirt and slacks. He smiles at Cody gently and the younger man eyes him warily.

"Cody, my name is Dr. Bennett," he reaches to out a hand to shake, but Cody immediately stiffens and keeps his hands down to his sides. Randy pokes him in the arm lightly, but the Dr. Bennett just shakes his head.

"Don't worry about it, Randy. Do you think you could step outside and Cody will come to you when we're done?"

Randy nods, but gives Cody one last hesitant look before he exits the room. Cody surveys the room. It's huge, with a stage along one wall and a long conference table in the middle lined with big leather desk chairs. Two of the chairs have been pulled off to a corner and are facing each other. Dr. Bennett proceeds to sit in one and Cody follows suit, slouching down in the other chair, staring at his hands in his lap.

"I'd like to start by hearing about what has been bothering you lately. Vince was told you are having some emotional issues?"

Cody just looks up at him briefly before looking back down. It's odd that he's about to tell this complete stranger things that most other people don't know about him. He doesn't think that he likes the concept very much. His problems have been nine years in the making, and this guy is just going to make everything all better?

"I . . . I have night terrors," he decides to start off slow.

"These were diagnosed by a sleep specialist?"

"Yeah, when I was sixteen."

Cody doesn't see it, but Dr. Bennett looks a bit shocked.

"And you still have them?"

"Uh huh."

"You've never seen a mental health professional until now?"

"No."

Dr. Bennett shakes his head. From what Vince had told him of Cody's reaction in the ring, it didn't sound like anything that a night terror would cause, more like post-traumatic stress. But there is nothing else in his behavior, at least what he had heard, that would indicate that that was Cody's problem.

"Do you know why you reacted the way you did in the ring yesterday?"

Cody plays with the hem of his shirt and sniffles lightly and Dr. Bennett can tell that he is already upsetting the young man.

"Sometimes I . . . remember things from the terrors and I get scared."

That would explain the PTSD symptoms; the older a person gets the chance that they may remember having a night terror increases, but night terrors in a twenty four year old man are a rare occurrence. Usually night terrors in an adult would indicate trauma of some sort.

"Something happened to you when you were sixteen, something that started the night terrors. What was it?"

And now he knows he's hit a nerve with the young man, who has gripped the fabric of his shorts so tightly that his knuckles are turning white. Cody looks up for a split second and even with the quick movement Dr. Bennett can see that he has tears in his eyes that are close to falling.

"You have to tell someone, it's the only way I can even attempt to help you."

"I have told someone!" Cody shrieks out and finally lets the tears fall.

"Who?"

"Ted."

"Dibiase?"

Cody just nods and refuses to look back at the older man again.

"If you told him can you tell me?"

No answer.

"When did you tell Ted?"

Cody just sits in his chair and cries silently, his hands back in his lap and his eyes locked to them.

"You don't want to talk to me anymore?"

. . .

"Maybe we'll just wait until our next session for more, okay?"

. . .

"Bring Ted with you next time. I want talk to you with him."

Cody continues to not answer, still looking down as Dr. Bennett gets up from his own chair and leaves the room to find Randy. He finds him sitting in the lobby with a magazine and Randy looks up concernedly, then stands up.

"I thought you were just going to send him out. Is something wrong?"

"He's rather upset; not totally unexpected, but I just wanted to leave him be for a moment. You can take him back to your hotel now. Vince will be setting up his next appointment soon and I am going to request the Ted come with him to see me, just so guys can know beforehand."

Randy thanks him and heads into the room to find Cody in the same position that the doctor left him. Kneeling down in front of the sad young man he lifts his head with a hand under the chin and when blue eyes meet his own he says, "Let's go get drunk."

Cody nods and follows Randy out of the room and to the parking lot, where the car sits. It's not a long ride to their hotel and when they get there, they head straight for the hotel bar and order their first drinks.

They barely speak; they just keep ordering drinks, Cody sucking his down way faster than Randy and it doesn't take long for Randy to realize that Cody is already past being buzzed.

"I'm so screwed up, ya know."

The sudden comment startles Randy for a second, "Not more so than anyone else on this planet."

"No, I really am," Cody slurs, "I have been from the day I got fucked."

Randy flinches, but Cody doesn't even notice, he just continues to ramble on.

"He really did a number on me, fucked me, cracked my head open."

"Cody," Randy says in a warning voice, putting a hand on Cody's shoulder, "Let's not talk about that here, okay? We can go to your room, see Ted. Everything will be fine."

"What's going to be fine?!" Cody shoves the hand away, "Not me! And I hope not him either. I hope Flair burns in hell!"

" . . . Ric Flair?"

Cody laughs in Randy's shocked face, "Ted didn't tell you? Your idol, your mentor held me down and fucked me while my dad wrestled."

"No, it can't be true," Randy doesn't want to believe it so badly.

"It is," Cody says seriously, his face somber, "He's why I'm screwed up."

And in true Randy fashion he quickly moves from sadness to anger. All he sees is red . . . and that never ends well for anyone.


	3. Chapter 3

"Cody, come on."

"B-but I want more drinks, Randeeeee," Cody keens, barely sitting upright on his stool.

"I said come with me, right fucking now!"

Even in his drunken stupor, Cody can tell that something is not right. He recalls that when Randy turns a particular shade of purple that often means trouble, and right now, Cody is seeing a lot of purple.

Randy quickly charges the drinks to his room and grabs Cody's wrist, dragging the younger man along with him out of the bar and to the elevator.

"Whas . . . whas goin' on?" Cody slurs out on the ride up in the elevator.

Randy's tone is very clipped, "We're going to see Ted."

Cody's face lights up, completely forgetting Randy's odd behavior, "Aww Teddy. We're goin' to see mah Teddles!"

Randy just nods his head and when the elevator dings on their floor, he grabs Cody again and pulls him along down the hall to Cody's shared room with Ted. Knocking loudly, he can barely control his heart rate as he waits for Ted to open the door.

When the door finally does open, the first thing Ted notices is that Cody's eyes are only half open and he seems to be swaying where he's standing.

"Randy, what happened?"

"He's just drunk, he'll be fine. I need to talk to you."

A frown crosses Ted's features, "We'll you can wait. Cody, baby, you okay?"

"Peachy keen, TedTed," Cody giggles, and passes Randy into the room to lean against Ted, "I feel sooooo good."

"Let's get you in bed, okay? Then I'm going to talk to Randy for a bit," Ted leads Cody to one of the beds and helps him lay down, then reached down to pull off the younger man's shoes. Once Cody has snuggled into the pillows, Ted moves back towards Randy who is no longer standing in the doorway, but has entered the room and shut the door behind him.

"You fucking lied to me Ted."

"What are you talking about?"

Randy leans against the door in the narrow entrance way facing Ted, "When you told us what happened to Cody. You didn't say who did it; said no one knew, but that's a lie!"

Ted face falls, "I didn't think you needed to know."

"I didn't need to know?!" Randy throws his hands in the air, "I didn't need to know that Ric Flair, a man I've idolized since I was kid, someone that's supported me my whole career, raped one of my best friends? Are you fucking serious?"

"That's why I didn't tell you," Ted says honestly, "Because I knew it would hurt you."

"Hurt me?!" Randy practically roars, "It's gonna fucking hurt him that's for sure. When I get my hands on him I'm gonna rip his dick off and kick his ass with it!"

Ted recoils from Randy's explosive anger, "You can't do that!"

"Why not?!"

"Because beating Flair to within an inch of his life is not going to change what happened. It's not going to make Cody better!"

Randy seems to deflate, "Don't you think I know that Ted? I . . . I just . . . I mean you know how much Cody means to me. He's like a brother to me, both of you are. I would do anything for you guys and . . . and I just can't stand the thought of something like that happening to him."

"Randy-"

"No, Ted," a tear slips down Randy's cheek, "Just forget it."

He goes before Ted can say anything else, leaving the younger man standing sadly before he shuts the door and turns back to the bed and Cody.

"Come lay here wit' me, Teddy," Cody coos gently, "Now that ya dummies are done yellin'."

Ted just sighs and lays down next to his plastered boyfriend, who immediately rolls into his side, burying his nose in Ted's neck.

"I should have just told him and John to begin with," Ted sighs.

"Can we talk about somethin' else, please?"

"Okay, it's just-"

Ted stills when he feels Cody's hand in his crotch. The younger man begins rubbing him gently and while Ted can't really resist Cody, he's knows that this is not the time.

"Cody, stop."

"Buh I wanna fuck, Teddy," he starts to nibble on Ted's neck, licking and sucking and in spite of himself Ted groans.

"Codes . . . wait, WAIT," as much as he doesn't want to, Ted lightly pushes Cody away from his neck, "We can't do this now. You're drunk."

Cody just pouts at him, but Ted has had some practice resisting the pink lips and big blue eyes, "Buh why Teddykins? You don' want me?"

Ted sighs, "Of course I want you. But our first time can't be like this. We'll both regret it. Another time Baby, I promise."

Cody rolls on his side to face away from Ted, sniffling a little, "I don' blame ya for not wantin' me. I'm so dirty."

That just breaks Ted's heart. He quickly spoons up to Cody's back, wrapping his arms around his waist. He kisses Cody's cheek gently, trying to be reassuring.

"No you're not. You're still the same person you've always been; it's just that something bad happened that was beyond your control. You have to stop punishing yourself. I love you Cody. You have to remember that."

"I love you too Teddy," Cody says quietly. The alcohol is flooding his system with warmth and combined with Ted's warm body pressed to him Cody succumbs to sleepiness.

Three floors down and five doors to the left, Randy is sitting on his bed, clutching his pillow so hard that on wrong move may send feathers flying around the room. John is sitting on the bed next to him, staring straight ahead, trying not to infuriate his friend any farther.

Randy had flown into the room, ranting about what had happened, what Cody had told him and all John could do was watch and listen and make sure that Randy didn't destroy their hotel room. Eventually he had tired himself out and ended up in the spot he is in now.

"I know you don't want to hear this Randy, but everything is going to be okay."

This just gets John a nasty look.

"It's true. Both you and I would do anything for Ted and Cody and we're going to fix this, okay?"

"How do you know?!" Randy snaps. He is not calming down at all and John is starting to fear that he may pop a blood vessel or, in the worst case, hunt down Ric Flair right now and smash his face in.

Okay, so maybe that's not the worst case scenario.

"Because I know. If you're just going to be angry all the time, then you're useless, Randy. Do you understand that? You have to calm down, think rationally."

"Don't talk down to me, John! I'm not a child! Just leave me alone, I'm going to sleep," he lies down and rolls over to face away from John.

John scoffs and gets up off the bed and move over to the other one. As soon as he gets to the side that Randy is facing, the younger man rolls away from him again, eyes wide open, and not sleeping at all.

"Then stop acting like one."


	4. Chapter 4

"Cody, it's time to go."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes," Ted sighs, "All we have to do is go downstairs. He's staying in the same hotel as us this week."

Cody just sits on the bed and sulks, his arms crossed across his chest.

"I'm coming with you, remember? It'll be fine."

Cody just stands and trails after Ted out of the room and downstairs to the lobby. They enter a smaller office this time off to the side of the building and Dr. Bennett stands from behind the desk he is occupying. After shaking both men's hands he sits and gestures for them to do the same in two chairs that sit in front of the desk.

"Cody, it's good to see you again. Ted, thank you very much for coming. Now I want to get started right away here. Cody, we're going to pick up where we left off, okay?"

". . . okay."

"When did you tell Ted about what happened to you?"

Cody glances at Ted quickly before murmuring, "When I was 17."

The oldest man jots something down on a pad of paper before continuing, "Why did you tell Ted and no one else?"

"He . . . he's my best friend. My parents would've freaked out; I didn't want them to know. I didn't want anyone to know, but I wanted . . . I wanted somebody to care."

"Would you be comfortable now with telling me what happened?"

Cody once again looks at Ted, who nods at him encouragingly, hoping that this therapist will be able to help Cody in a way that he hasn't been able to.

"I was raped."

Dr. Bennett doesn't even flinch. In his line of work, over the years he's heard some of the most horrifying things that people could do to each other. He doesn't like to think that he's become desensitized to these kinds of things; he still feels sorry for the victims.

"Do you think that you deserved it?"

"No!" Cody practically recoils in his seat and Ted has to grab his arm tightly to keep him from tipping over.

"Just asking things I need to know. What do you feel when you remember it?"

Cody seems to fold into himself in the seat and Ted, who is still gripping his arm, says, "Tell him what you told me. Do you remember?"

"I . . . I feel dirty," Cody mumbles, "Like no one will ever want to touch me."

"Cody," Dr. Bennett starts, "Do you see Ted's hand on your arm? Do you feel it?"

The young man just nods, looking at Ted's long fingers curled around his forearm.

"You've got one very strong piece of evidence right there that shows that is not true. I want you to think about the people around you; the ones who either know or don't know what's going on and think about how they treat you. Can you do that?"

Cody nods again.

"I want you to tell me about them. How do they interact with you? How do you respond to them?"

"Well, there's Randy," Cody actually looks up at the therapist, "He's like . . . one of my best friends. He's always really protective over me. And John: he's really nice; probably the smartest guy I know. He really keeps us in line. I always have a good time when I'm with John and Randy. There's Hunter, Kofi, Mike; lots of people that I'm friends with."

"And what about Ted?"

Cody looks at Ted and they lock eyes for a moment, while Cody internally questions what he should say. Ted looks like he has no qualms, as always, and Cody decides that since this doctor is here to help him, he should be able to tell him the truth.

"Ted and I . . . I love him. He loves me."

Dr. Bennett just smiles and returns to writing down his little notes. He's silent for a minute and Ted rubs Cody's arm reassuringly.

"Well I think we accomplished a lot today gentlemen," Dr. Bennett stands, "You're free to go. And Cody? Keep remembering what you just told me."

From the office they head right to the lobby. They're supposed to be heading to the arena to get ready for RAW but no sooner do they get there when they are intercepted by John on their way to the door. He looks a little disappointed in Ted.

"Randy told you everything," it's not a question.

"Yeah," John sighs, "and we have a problem."

"What's wrong?"

The older man glances from Ted to Cody and then back again before replying, "Ric is going to be on the show tonight."

"I'm not going."

Cody's sudden panic doesn't surprise the other two men one bit, but now they have a few problems.

"You don't have to go," Ted slings an arm around Cody's shoulders, ignoring the look that John gives him, "We'll figure it out."

And he does figure it out when he sees Evan Bourne standing by the front door of the hotel talking to Montel. He recalls that Evan is having a match on Superstars this week. He leaves Cody with John and heads over to the two men, apologizing when he interrupts their conversation.

"Evan, you don't have a match tonight, right?"

"Yeeaaahh . . .," the smaller man looks at him suspiciously.

"I know that you usually hang out at the arena, but I need you to do me a huge favor."

Montel has wandered away and Evan doesn't look any less wary of what Ted is about to ask him, "It depends on what it is."

Ted puts on his best puppy dog eyes and while he knows he won't be able to rival Evan's own, he figures it's worth a try, "Cody is staying here and he's not been doing too well lately and I was wondering if you could just stay here and hang out with him. He has his video games set up and I would owe you. Pleeeease."

Evan just smiles, "Sure."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Great! Come with me," Ted grabs Evan by the wrist and drags him back to where Cody and John are standing.

"Cody, you and Evan are going to go play video games."

Cody just looks at him with wide eyes for a moment before Ted ushers him and Evan towards the elevators, "Go. Have fun."

Once they are out of earshot Ted sighs, but John still looks concerned, "But what about the show? Vince is gonna have a fit."

"I'll deal with it John!" Ted throws his hands in the air and stomps off towards the door. It doesn't do him much good because he has to wait for Randy and John to get to the car before he can leave anyway, but it made him feel better for a minute.

He goes to see Vince as soon as they get to the arena, knocking on his boss' make-shift office before entering.

"What can I do for you, Ted?"

"Cody didn't come tonight."

Vince looks up from a paper on his desk, "What do you mean he didn't come? Did something happen?"

Ted doesn't answer for a moment. He knows that telling Vince the truth is going to have even more serious repercussions than telling Randy, but if he doesn't tell, Cody could be in big trouble with the chairman.

"Well, we about to leave, but he got panicked . . ."

"Why?"

"Cause John told us that Ric was going to be on the show tonight," Ted scuffs his feet against the carpet, not making eye contact.

Confusion crosses the older man's face, "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Because when Cody was 15 Flair raped him! That's why he has night terrors, that's why he messed up in the ring, that's why he's not here!"

Vince doesn't answer, just stares at Ted and tries to process the information that has just been thrown on him. But in true Vince McMahon fashion he recovers quickly, although anger can be seen on his face.

"Tell Cody it's okay that he's not here. Now go get ready for your match."

Ted doesn't know how to react to Vince's tone so he just does as he's told and leaves the room, hoping tonight goes quickly.

And it does, at least for Ted. It's not long before he is heading back to the hotel with John. But Randy is not so fortunate. When he had first seen Ric he had barely been able to control himself, but had managed to make it through the show without causing any major incidents.

Now, Ric in his boisterous voice declares that for old times sake the Evolution guys are going to go out to eat and catch up. Hunter and Dave won't allow Randy to refuse so they head back to the hotel and convene in the restaurant. The three older men carry on a pleasant conversation while Randy sits quietly, only speaking when a question is thrown his way.

All he can focus on is Ric Flair. The man hasn't aged very well and Randy cringes when he thinks of him putting his hands on anyone, let alone against their will. He tries to pick at his food, play with the table cloth, distract himself somehow, but he is getting angrier and angrier by the second.

"So Randal," Ric drawls, a grin on his face, "How are those boys of yours? Dibiase is just like his father and that Runnels boy is a spitfire."

In the blink of an eye, Randy is over the table and on top of Ric, throwing punches, "Don't you DARE talk about him like that!"

Hunter and Dave try to pull him away, but he is so determined to beat Flair into the ground that even the two of them are having trouble.

"Randy, let go!"

"What the fuck, man?!"

None of it matters though. Ric Flair is bleeding because of him, and right now, that's what he cares about most.


	5. Chapter 5

Short chapter is short. Also I'm not gonna lie, there may be a sequel to this *faints*

"Have you lost your fucking mind?!"

Hunter and Dave finally manage to tear Randy away from Ric, who is a bloody mess on the floor. Once it seems like Randy is no longer going to pounce, Dave moves back over to Ric to check on the older man, while Hunter just holds on to Randy with a look of disbelief on his face.

After a moment though, he comes to his senses and pulls Randy out of the restaurant because everyone is staring at them and that's just asking for trouble.

"I need to see Cody."

Randy proceeds to walk towards the elevators and Hunter quickly follows, not trusting the younger man to be alone right now. He still doesn't know why Randy snapped and is determined to find out. The trip up to Cody's room is short, but Randy is still so worked up that the elevator seems to be shaking.

Hunter just trails behind silently until they get to the room that Randy, for some reason, has the keycard to. Once they enter and the door shuts, all seems calm for a moment. Ted is napping on one of the beds, oblivious to the world. Evan and Cody on the other hand, are practically on top of the television, completely engrossed in Mario Kart. They are both moving with their character, as if their body is what is actually doing the controlling.

But the older man can't keep quiet anymore, "What the hell was that about Randy?! You could've killed him!"

This jolts Cody and Evan out of their video game induced trance and they look up at the two other men in confusion. Ted stirs on the bed, but doesn't wake.

"He deserved it!" Randy seethes, his face regaining that angry purple color, "That man is a fucking monster and I'm glad I did it!"

Ted finally seems to be waking and he struggles to sit up and comprehend what is going on, but Cody has already figured it out. Randy did something to Ric; something that could get him in a lot of trouble.

"What's going on?" Ted mumbles, rubbing his eyes.

"What's going on," Hunter growls, "is that this maniac just attacked Ric for no reason! He beat the shit out of him!"

Cody drops his controller and gingerly leans back against the bed, letting his face fall into his hands. On the other hand, Ted stands conflicted emotions running across his face, "That's why I didn't tell you the truth. Do you realize what you've done?"

"The truth about what?" Hunter interjects, but Ted doesn't answer, leaving Randy to explain for himself. He looks at Cody huddled on the floor, then Evan who is sitting beside him looking concerned, and then at Hunter who is waiting for him to say something. How far is this going to spread?

"What I'm about to say doesn't leave this room, okay? Besides us only John and Vince know."

Hunter just nods, looking extremely impatient and Evan has wrapped an arm around Cody, who has gone from happy to sad in a matter of minutes.

"Remember when Ted told you about the night terrors?"

He gets another nod in response as Hunter remembers that strange night when Cody hit him and then hadn't been able to participate in his match.

"Well they were caused by a traumatic experience," Randy is hating talking about the younger man like he is not in the room, but at this point, it makes it easier, "When Cody was 15, Ric raped him."

For a second, everything is still, but before anyone can react Hunter has shoved Evan out of the way and is practically throttling Cody on the floor.

"You little LIAR!"

Now it's Ted and Randy who are trying to restrain Hunter, who is trying his best to choke the life out of Cody. In return, Cody claws at Hunter's face until Randy and Ted get Hunter far enough away so that Cody can crawl to the other side of the bed.

Finally Hunter backs off by himself and stands by the door, chest heaving, hair disheveled. As soon as it looks like he is going to stay away, Ted runs to Cody's side and surprisingly the younger man doesn't appear to be that upset. So under the guise of comforting Cody, Ted hugs him fiercely to at least make himself feel a bit better.

"You're really going to eat that bullshit, aren't you Orton?"

"Get over yourself Hunter," Randy spits, "You've seen how he gets, that's no bullshit."

"Keep telling yourself that," and with that, thankfully Hunter storms from the room.

Ted is helping Cody to his feet and Randy moves towards Evan, who is sitting quietly on the floor where Hunter threw him. He extends a hand and helps the smaller man to his feet also.

"I should probably leave," Evan grimaces and Randy nods in agreement.

"Yeah, I should probably get out of here too."

Before either of them can take a step towards the door, Cody's voice rings through the room.

"Randy, wait."


	6. Chapter 6

Randy freezes where he stands, afraid more than anything that he's upset Cody even more. He faces the younger man with a pensive look on his face, which turns to surprise when Cody throws his arms around the older man's shoulders, hugging him tightly.

"Umm, Cody?" Randy's voice is muffled in Cody's shoulder, "You're not mad?"

Cody just squeezes tighter before pulling back a little bit, "I am a little bit. I can only imagine what kind of scene you caused, but still . . . I wanted to thank you before you left."

"Thank me?"

"Yeah, I mean, that you would do something like that for me. I know how much Ric meant to you."

Cody looks a little unsure of himself now and Randy doesn't want the younger man to start doubting himself, "Don't sweat it kid. I was actually . . . happy to do it."

Cody just nods in response and moves to lie down on the bed, Ted immediately joining him and wrapping his arms around him. Evan looks at them for a moment before gesturing to Randy that they should leave now and this time they successfully make it to the door.

They head down the hall towards the elevator and Randy takes a second to glance at the young man walking next to him. It's not fair that another person has gotten tangled up in all of this.

"Are you okay?"

Evan just glances up at Randy as they stop and wait for the doors to open, "Yeah, I think so. That's a lot of information to process."

"I actually meant physically. Hunter tossed you pretty good."

"Yeah well," Evan rubs at his scalp, "that hurt."

They step in the elevator and Evan presses his floor before Randy says, "Can we talk about what just happened?"

"Uh, okay, we'll go to my room."

The rest of the trip to the room is silent until they get inside. Evan plops down on one bed and Randy does the same on the other.

"So," Randy begins, "you heard the basic story. Everything just kind of . . . exploded tonight."

Evan sighs, "Yeah, I got that. I still really don't believe it though. I mean, I never met Ric, but he's such an icon, ya know? It's so horrible that he could do something like that. Poor Codes."

Truthfully, Randy is a bit jealous of how centered Evan seems. He has just had an enormous boom dropped on him and is still thinking rationally. It was just like John said. If Randy could be like that, he wouldn't have attacked Ric, he wouldn't have potentially put his job, his livelihood, on the line.

"I'm trusting you not to spread this."

"Oh geez, no of course not," Evan insists, "I would never do that."

Randy smiles a bit, "Well with that said, I need a favor. Since you're somewhat separated from this whole situation, it would be a big help if you see Cody getting moody or anything, if you could just try and take his mind off of it. He seems to be responding to me, John, and Ted less and less."

"Sure, Randy," Evan agrees easily, "I'll keep an eye on him."

"Thanks," Randy allows himself to relax and doesn't see the thoughtful look that Evan is throwing his way.

Back downstairs, Ted is running a gentle hand over Cody's neck. It didn't take long for angry, red marks to appear and while Ted doesn't fully understand why Cody is being so calm, he's grateful for it.

"I'm so sorry he did that to you Baby."

Cody just wraps an arm around Ted's waist, "It's not your fault. I'll . . . I'll be okay. I've got you here to protect me."

"This is a change," Ted says, "I'm glad you're okay, but can you tell me what you're feeling?"

"I'm feeling . . . loved," Cody blushes a bit, then smiles for the first time in a long time, "I feel like it's just sinking in that you and Randy really would do anything for me and it feels good."

Ted replaces his hand with his lips and sucks at the tender flesh softly. He just can't resist after seeing that cute, gap-toothed grin and all he wants to do is touch Cody.

Cody groans, "And that feels good too."

"Good," Ted pulls away to speak for half a second before leaning in to kiss Cody. The younger man responds eagerly and for now, everything is okay.

Well, Hunter is certainly not okay.

He paces back and forth in his hotel room, impatiently waiting for his father-in-law to answer his phone.

"Vincent McMahon speaking."

"Vince! I'm so glad I got a hold of you. We've got a major situation."

"Really? And what's that?"

"In the restaurant, Randy just attacked Ric, like really beat him up."

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, I just spoke to Dave and he's looking after him."

"Did Randy tell you why he did it?"

"Uh huh," Hunter scoffs and sits down on his bed, "He insisted we go see Runnels and when we got there, he tries to tell me that Ric is a rapist. That he raped Cody when he was a kid. I'm so glad that little liar was in the room so I could get my hands around his scrawny little neck."

"You hurt that boy?!"

"A little," Hunter admits, "Why do you care? He's trying to ruin Ric by spreading shit like that."

"Did it ever fucking occur to you that Ric Flair may not be the saint that you think he is?"

"Why are you mad at me?" Hunter stands from the bed, agitated, "It's Randy and Cody that you should be pissed at? Can you believe that shit?"

"Yes, I can."

Hunter freezes at the tone that he is hearing through his cell, "I don't understand."

"Pull your head out of Flair's ass and see the truth Hunter. Cody didn't lie about anything. And if you put another hand on that boy, there are going to be serious consequences. I'll deal with Orton, are we clear?"

"But-," Hunter begins to protest.

But he hears a click on the other end, and the next sound is that of his phone, smashing against the wall.


	7. Chapter 7

Cody wakes the next morning to find that Ted is already awake and is just lying there, looking at him. He just smiles when their gazes connect and he lets himself get lost in Ted's pretty blue eyes for a moment before something changes.

He's reminded of Randy's steely blue eyes, but there's something wrong. They're clouded with fear and all he can hear is Randy crying out in pain. Then he remembers: a young, strong Ric hurting Randy. He's just hitting him; there's blood dripping to the floor and its Randy's. All his.

Ted places a hand on his cheek and that's when Cody realizes that his own eyes are watering.

"You had another one," Ted says simply, then wipes his thumb over a stray tear that has managed to make its way down Cody's face.

"I remember."

"Can you tell me what it was?" Ted asks softly, his heart breaking a little. He had been so proud of Cody the night before for being so strong in the face of everything that had happened. But honestly, to say he wasn't expecting a night terror would've been too much to ask.

"It was Ric and he was beating up Randy," Ted can feel Cody starting to tremble under his hands, "There was blood and . . . that's all I saw."

Ted just wraps his arms around Cody, who buries his face in Ted's neck, and as much as Ted loves having Cody in arms, this isn't the way he wants it to be. He kisses Cody on the forehead gently and sighs. They've still got a long way to go.

Randy wakes up disoriented, still in his clothes and apparently not in his own hotel room. He confirms this fact by looking over to the other bed where Evan is sleeping on his stomach with his head at the foot of the bed, one arm dangling towards the floor. It's quite cute, Randy thinks, before rubbing his eyes sleepily.

He sits up and the bed squeaks, rousing Evan who shoots up like he's been stung. Randy watches amusedly as the younger man flails a bit and then rolls right off the bed, landing on the floor with a soft thump.

"Are you okay?" Randy asks for the second time, "You're more high strung than I thought."

"Uh, yeah," Evan groans, pushing himself back up onto the bed, "I guess we fell asleep."

"And I am not high strung," he adds indignantly.

"Yeah, right," Randy smiles, "I guess I should get back to by room."

He stands and heads towards the door, but this time its Evan's voice that stops him.

"Randy?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you want me to keep an eye on Cody and all, and I'm cool with that, but I just want you to know," Evan looks at the floor and Randy can see that his cheeks are flushed, "That if iyou/i ever need to talk about anything, I'm here for you too."

Randy just keeps looking at Evan until the younger man finally lifts his eyes and truthfully, it feels good to be the one who is being looked after for a change.

"Thanks," Randy says, "I might take you up on that one day."

And with that, he leaves the room.

Ted's plan for the rest of the day is pretty simple: workout at the hotel gym, see the therapist with Cody, check out and head back to Florida with his boyfriend in tow. It doesn't seem like it's going to be too troubling, but his first step in the plan has already provided him with an obstacle.

Hunter is standing in the corner of the gym sipping from a water bottle and talking to a recently returned Shawn Michaels. Just seeing the older man makes Ted's blood boil, but at the same time, he doesn't want a repeat of last night. He'd like to think that he can control himself better than Randy.

But that doesn't mean he doesn't have anything to say to Hunter.

Not even beginning his workout, he approaches the two older men. Hunter throws him a nasty look and stops talking to Shawn as soon as he sees the young Dibiase coming nearer.

"What do you want?" Hunter sneers and Shawn looks at him questioningly. To his knowledge the two men had been on good terms with one another.

"You thought I was just going to watch what you did yesterday and not say anything about it?" Ted narrows his eyes at the older man's naïveté, "If you did, well then you're dumber than I thought."

"You're upset about what I did to your little boyfriend?" Hunter steps right up to Ted so they are face to face, "Well he's a punk-ass liar and deserves to get his face smashed in."

Rage flashes across Ted's face and he's about to do what he said he wasn't when Shawn steps between them.

"I don't know what this is about, but let's not get physical in here, okay?"

"No need for that Shawn," Ted grins, "Just giving your old friend here a warning."

He makes eye contact with Hunter over Shawn's shoulder and hisses, "If you ever lay a hand on him again, you won't have to worry about Randy, you won't have to worry about John, you won't even have to worry about your father-in-law."

Hunter just holds his gaze, apparently not intimidated . . . yet.

"You'll have me to worry about. Because you got one thing right . . . he iis/i my boyfriend."

He ignores Shawn's eyes widening in surprise, not finished delivering his message.

"So think about it, Hunter. Think about your wife; your precious Stephanie. If someone had done to her what you did to Cody, what lengths would you go to to get revenge?"

Hunter blanches at the thought, finally understanding what he's gotten himself into.

"That's right. So if you ever even think of hurting him again, don't. Cause there'll be hell to pay if you do."

Ted can't even stay to hear any kind of retort from Hunter. He's so agitated that he forgoes the workout and heads back to his room, only to find Cody staring at the screen while Link runs around Hyrule Castle to save Princess Zelda for the millionth time.

Sitting down next to Cody on the floor, Ted throws an arm around his shoulders and kisses him on the cheek chastely. Cody glances at him happily before looking back at the screen and asking, "No workout today?"

"No," Ted smiles, "No workout today."

The two of them resort to hanging out in the room for a while before they have to go downstairs to see Dr. Bennett. He has an office again and Ted and Cody sit, waiting patiently for him to say something.

"Cody, today I want to talk some more about the night terrors because they are what seem to be causing your problems during the day and not simply the memory of the incident."

"Okay."

"When was the last time you had a night terror?"

Cody looks at him almost guiltily before answering quietly, "Last night."

Dr. Bennett shakes his head sadly, wondering why this young man had gone so long without any type of guidance.

"Well, since we've talked about the emotional elements behind the terrors, I'd like to tell you about some things you can do to regulate your sleep cycle and diet to limit or possibly eliminate the night terrors. I'm not going to guarantee that they will stop completely, but there are things you can do that have been deemed helpful. There are also medications, but I always address those as a last resort, especially for someone in your line of work."

Cody just nods, already looking overwhelmed by the amount of information he is receiving.

"First, and most importantly, is to try to go to sleep and wake up at the same times each day. That will let your body know when it can relax to sleep and when you need to be alert. Sleep is very important. Another thing is that night terrors usually occur around the same time each night that you have them. Since I'm assuming you and Ted are going to be together, he can wake you up for a few minutes about when your night terrors usually happen to try and head them off before they start."

Dr. Bennett just smiles warmly when Cody blushes at the mention of him and Ted being together.

"Also, I've compiled a list for you," he hands over a piece of paper, "of foods that you should avoid at certain times. I don't know about your regular diet, but this shouldn't really affect what you choose to eat, just what times you do. So the first big one is caffeine and sugar. Those are a big no-no after 12 p.m. Obviously that means no coffee, chocolate, and there are medications like ibuprofen that contain caffeine so I would stay away from those."

Ted grabs the list from Cody, surprised at the kinds of food that you shouldn't have before going to bed. He immediately thinks that he should probably consult this list also.

"As for right before bed, you don't want anything high in fat, protein, anything spicy, or anything alcoholic. Other liquids are alright as long as you don't have too much right before sleeping, otherwise you'll have interrupted sleep simply because you'll have to get up to go to the bathroom."

The therapist takes a deep breath after finishing, realizing that he has just thrown a lot of information on Cody. But hopefully he can take everything he's just received and use it to help himself. After all, that's what Dr. Bennett is here for.

"I know this is a lot, but it should help, okay? This is all I wanted to discuss with you today. I know you guys are going home for a bit, so try this out and see what happens."

Ted looks over at Cody who still seems a bit shell-shocked before answering for him, "I'll make sure he does everything you said. Thank you very much, Doctor."

Dr. Bennett nods in response and Ted stands, tugging Cody along with him so they can go pack up their stuff to head to Florida for a little break at Ted's apartment. They pack quickly, just wanting to get to the airport. After calling Randy and then John for a fast goodbye, they head out.

It's a long trip, and they don't get to Ted's apartment until well after night fall. They don't bother to unpack, just falling into Ted's large bed next to each other and settling in for the night.

"It's a good thing you've stashed some stuff here," Ted states as Cody once again snuggles against him.

"Well you know I would always come here to escape my parents," Cody laughs a bit, thinking back to when they were younger. But then he quiets some, "Ted, I was thinking."

"Okay," Ted smiles, knowing Cody wouldn't appreciate a joke at that moment.

"How do you think our parents would feel about us?'

Ted freezes and silently curses himself for thinking that this would never be mentioned.

"Teddy?"

"You know my parents Cody, what do you think?" he snaps, immediately regretting it when a hurt look crosses Cody's face.

"I was just wondering," Cody rolls away from Ted and the older man knows that he is pouting, "You don't have to be a jerk about it."

Ted outs a hand on Cody's shoulder, trying to get the younger man to look back at him but Cody won't budge.

"Code, I'm sorry, but can we not worry about that right now? My main concern right now is you, okay?"

Cody doesn't answer and Ted gives up with a sigh, rolling over and dreading the next time that question might come up.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Sexy things and then sex. Rough sex. You've been warned.

Randy paces the floor of the kitchen in his condo in St. Louis, his cell phone pressed against his ear. He anxiously waits for John to answer, because he's been thinking about things, things he's not used to and figures that John might be at least be able to make him feel a little better.

"Hello?"

"John! Finally, you need to pick up your phone faster, man."

"Randy, it rang like, 3 times."

"Anyway, I need to tell you everything you missed. But before that let me say . . . well . . . just please don't kill me."

"Lizzie, I'm gonna have to take this in the other room," Randy hears John say and then some scuffling as he presumably walks about the house, "Okay, what the hell did you do?"

Randy sinks down in a chair slowly before answering, "Well I kinda . . . I attacked Ric."

"YOU WHAT?!" John practically screeches, causing Liz to run into the room in alarm. After promising her that he's okay and nothing's wrong. John returns his attention to Randy, "What the fuck did you do that for? Do you realize what a risk you took?!"

"I wasn't really thinking about myself, Cena!" Randy comes back with, "He asked about Cody and Ted and I just couldn't stop myself."

" . . ."

"And don't say it. I know I have no self control."

"Well as long as you know you have a problem. Admitting it is the first step to recovery."

"Will you shut up?"

"Okay," John sighs, "so what happened next?"

"I went up to Cody's room to tell him what had happened, but Hunter came with me. Evan was there too, hanging out with Cody and Ted and Hunter was so angry I ended up having to tell him the truth about what happened and why I went after Ric like that."

"Oh shit, what did he say to that?"

Randy gets angry at just the thought of what Hunter had done, "He snapped! He just grabbed Cody by the throat, shaking him and calling him a liar. It was really scary John. Both Teddy and I had to get him away. He just saying how it was a bunch of lies and then he left."

"This is insane, you know," John offers.

"Uh huh."

"You also know that I'm going to stick to Hunter like glue now. If he gives me one little opportunity to kick his ass, I will."

The younger man smiles on his end of the phone, "Thanks John, that means a lot."

John scoffs, "Come on, you know I would do anything for you and the wonder twins."

"Actually, there's something else I wanted to talk to you about."

"Sure, what is it?"

"Well, uh, it's kinda weird for me to say, I mean . . . you're okay with Ted and Cody, right?"

Randy can practically hear John's confusion over the phone, "Like them being together? I'm fine with it, you know that. Why? You don't have a problem with them being in love, do you?"

"No, not at all!" Randy defends himself quickly, "I was just wondering how you would feel if . . . if I felt that way . . . about a guy."

John chuckles, "Are you trying to tell me you're gay?"

He can't see the face that Randy makes, "I don't think so, but there's this one guy-"

"Who?"

" . . . Evan," Randy mumbles, knowing that it's no use trying to lie to John.

"Evan Bourne?!" now John is full out laughing, "That . . . that's so cute!"

"You're not helping!" Randy says crossly, "It's just that we talked after what happened with Hunter and Cody and he was being really nice and-"

"He's not bad to look at?"

"Are you sure you're not the gay one?"

"I'm not gay! Just joking around, Randy!" there's a pause, "Great, now Liz is in here again looking at me funny."

"Well at least I feel better."

"Good for you. Is your crisis over now?"

"No," Randy's smile fades now, "but I'll be okay. Thanks man."

"You're welcome. Now go away."

"Got it," Randy hangs up and stands from his chair, almost whistling on his way out of the kitchen.

Down in Tampa, Cody is dozing on the couch in front of the television when Ted comes in and lets his hands head straight for Cody's stomach. Cody eyes fly open and he twists as best he can to get away from Ted's ticklers, but he really doesn't have anywhere to go.

"What are you doing? I'm up! I'm up!"

He sits up and Ted relents with a smile, sitting down on the couch next to him, "You shouldn't be sleeping now, you'll never be able to get to sleep tonight."

Cody just sags forward and lets his eyes droop, "But I'm tired, Teddy."

"No, you're bored," Ted eyes him knowingly, "Let's go have a workout."

"Really? A workout? Really, Teddy?

"Really, a workout," Ted sighs, "We'll go to my place here. I wanna show you something."

Cody finally gives in, and after they change they head out to the gym that Ted has been frequenting for the past few years. It's privately owned, so it's small and out of the way with only a few other people inside when they get there.

Ted heads to the back corner where there's a hanging, well used punching bag. Cody looks at him questioningly. This is definitely not part of their usually workout routine.

"What are we doing?"

"We're not doing anything," Ted starts, "You are going to beat the crap out of this bag."

He turns to face Cody and tosses him a roll of flex tape. Cody catches it, "What? Why? What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Because I think it will make you feel better. And you need to wrap your hands."

Cody just gives him a blank look, "How?"

"Hell if I know," Ted thinks for a moment, "You know how Evan wraps his left hand? Do it like that so your knuckles are covered along with binding your wrists."

He just watches as Cody contemplates for a second, then starts to wrap his hands, and by the time he's done his knuckles are sufficiently covered to prevent any burn from the punching bag. Then he just stands in front of the bag and looks at it.

"Well, what are you waiting for?"

"I don't know what to do."

Ted scoffs, "We're not here for technique training. Just punch it."

Cody throws one tentative punch and the bag barely swings.

"Pretend its Ric."

The younger man freezes for a second then turns to fully face Ted, hands on his hips, "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Ted shrugs.

"Fine," Cody huffs and turns back to the bag, taking a moment to focus on it.

The punch he throws this time is harder and he throws another and another and now he seems to be one a roll as Ted looks on appreciatively. The punches come with more and more power behind them and Cody throws in some foot work, like the funny stuff he does when he's overacting in the ring.

He goes at the bag for almost ten minutes, sweat practically pouring down his face and staining his shirt, before Ted steps up next to him and stops him.

"How do you feel?"

Cody just looks at him for an instant before smiling, "Awesome actually."

"Good. Let's go home and eat."

But at that Cody frowns, "Aren't you gonna get a work out in?"

"Nah, I just wanted you to do that."

"We don't have to leave yet, Teddy. I'm not even hungry," Cody interjects, picking at the tape on his hands.

Ted shakes his head, "First of all, I came for a workout this morning while you were sleeping. Second of all, not hungry? That's a lie and we both know it."

"It is not!"

"Yes, it is," Ted insists, "Let's go home, get cleaned up, and I'll make us something to eat, okay?"

"Fine," Cody concedes and they head out, seemingly just as fast as they had arrived.

They get back to Ted's apartment and Cody heads straight for the bathroom, shedding his clothes along the way. Ted watches him go before following and doing the same with his own clothing.

Cody is already in the shower with the water running, when Ted gets to the bathroom and Cody jumps a bit when Ted slides into the shower behind him. Cody turns to face him and they step closer to one another, almost touching.

"Do you want me to leave?" Ted asks, not able to tear his eyes away from the water sliding its way down Cody's tanned chest, his nipples hardening under the flow of the water.

"No," Cody rasps out before pressing himself fully against Ted and practically smashing their lips together. Ted sighs in relief, relishing in the kiss because it's been so long since they've been together like this.

Their erections are already fully present and rubbing between their stomachs. They pay them no mind and continue to kiss, but eventually the need becomes too great and they grind up against each other. Ted brings a hand down between them and grasps both their cocks and starts rubbing up and down.

Breaths are coming faster and faster and Cody throws his arms around Ted's shoulders. The bathroom is completely steamed up and it's not long before Cody and Ted are panting into each other's mouths. Ted just strokes faster and in minutes he's coming, quickly followed by Cody as they coat their stomachs with come that is rapidly washed away the streaming water.

"That was amazing," Cody gasps out, kissing Ted once last time before letting his forehead fall against Ted's shoulder.

"I'm glad you liked it," Ted smirks, still coming down himself.

"Do we get to eat now?"

Ted just looks at Cody in surprise before offering him a huge smile, "Of course Baby, let's go make you something."

Back in St. Louis, Randy is at a local club that's gained an insane amount of popularity over the years and people from all over the city flock there. He sitting at the bar alone, watching a local band perform when a bouncing mass pops in next to him.

"Hi Randy!"

Randy looks to his side and to his shock Evan is standing next to him, teetering from foot to foot.

"Uhhh, hi. Are you okay?"

"You know," Evan frowns, "you ask me that a lot."

Randy raises an eyebrow, then realizes, "I guess that's true. But honestly you seem drunk."

"Nope, not drunk," Evan answers, "just bored. This isn't really my kinda place, but a couple of my buddies wanted to hang here."

Nodding, Randy smiles and for a second his brain stops functioning, "Yeah, I was about to head out . . . do you wanna come? We can go to my place and get a pizza, some beers."

"That sounds . . . pretty good actually," Evan smiles back, "Let's go."

Randy leads them out of the club and to his car, where Evan settles himself in the passenger seat for the short ride back. They sit in comfortable silence when Evan says, "I might have to crash at your place though, I don't live so close and I don't think any of my friends are gonna be able to come back for me."

The older man just shifts uncomfortably in his seat before replying, "That's okay, plenty of room."

They pull into the driveway ten minutes later and Evan trails behind Randy to the front door. As soon as they get inside, the younger man presses himself up against Randy, who freezes in astonishment.

"Screw this Randy," Evan basically moans, "I know you want me."

"Wha . . . what?"

Evan grasps Randy's neck and stands on his toes, trying to bring his lips towards the larger man's, and in the same motion successfully grinding his body against Randy's, "I really like you. I wanna be with you. Please?"

Randy can't resist; this is what he wanted. He leans down the rest of the way to meet Evan's lips and they kiss softly at first, but it soon becomes heated and rough. They shed their shirts and Randy's hands move to Evan's jeans, unbuttoning the pants as fast as he can.

"Bed. Now," Randy rasps out, sending shivers down Evan's spine and Evan's legs can't move fast enough, so Randy practically drags him towards his bedroom, both men losing their shoes during the trip. They fall onto the bed and next their pants are gone. Randy covers Evan's body with his own, mapping the smaller man's hard muscles with his tongue.

"G-d, that feels so good," Evan pants, running his hand over Randy's close cropped hair.

"I'm gonna fuck you so hard," Randy growls as he rips Evan's briefs from his legs before working on his own underwear.

"Wait, wait," Evan pleads, "I wanna suck your dick first."

They flip over, completely naked now, so that Evan is kneeling between Randy's legs, an extremely hard cock in his face. He doesn't tease, just immediately swallows down the hot flesh and Randy's hands scramble to grab anything they can, one hand fisting the sheets, and the other burying itself in Evan's dark hair.

Randy can only cry out as Evan's mouth takes him all the way down over and over again. He can feel a gentle tongue flitting around the head before the delicious heat envelopes him again and he writhes on the bed, sweat dripping down his perfect body.

"Okay, okay," Randy begs this time, "Ev, please, I need to be in you. Stop, please."

Evan pulls his mouth away with a pop and shrieks when Randy scoops him up and drops him on his stomach, his head by the end of the bed, his arms dangling, just like that first morning. And without preparation, without lube, without a condom, Randy pushes his hard cock into Evan, eliciting a scream from the younger man.

"Your ass is so tight, feels so amazing," Randy whispers into Evan's ear, then trails kisses down his spine as he tries to thrust in and out against the friction. Evan just holds on to the edge of the bed for dear life, his cries fading into moans as Randy's forceful thrusts become harder and harder, faster and faster.

Randy can't keep his mouth off of Evan. He nips at an ear, plants kisses on his shoulders and then latches on to the side of Evan's neck and sucks roughly, determined to leave a mark. All the while, Evan's hard cock is rubbing between his stomach and the sheets and between that and Randy's cock hitting that oh-so-special spot inside of him at a wonderful pace, he's squirming on the bed so badly that Randy has to pin his hips down with his large hands.

He's holding him down so hard, that there are going to be bruises in the morning, but both of them are so encased in the pleasure that it doesn't even occur to them. Randy's cock is leaking so much that his thrusts are finally becoming perfectly smooth and Evan is so close that he can't even form sentences.

"Randy . . . so close . . . ugh . . . a little more," Evan's hands scrabble at the sheets to find purchase as his orgasm rips through him. He spurts onto the sheets without even being touched and with a loud cry as he convulses underneath Randy.

His ass becomes impossibly tight as his orgasm overtakes him and Randy bucks his hips a few final times before he comes inside of Evan with a number of deep grunts. After breathing deeply for a few seconds, he pulls out slowly and when he sees his come leak out of Evan's twitching hole, he actually realizes what he has just done.

He collapses next to Evan and gathers the young man into his arms. Evan just looks at him with hooded eyes and Randy feels his heart sink.

"I'm so sorry," he whispers, kissing Evan gently on the lips, "I didn't mean to . . . I hurt you. Oh G-d, I'm sorry Evan."

Evan doesn't hesitate to return the kiss, "I'll be okay, Randy. You felt so good. I wanted it."

"But not like that-"

"Let's just go to sleep, okay? Talk about it in the morning?"

"Okay, if that's what you want," Randy says reluctantly and they start to shift so that they are laying the proper way on the bed and Randy feels that pain in his heart again when Evan winces and whimpers a bit when he moves.

They slide under the covers, heads on the pillows and Randy once again pulls Evan into his embrace, peppering kisses over his face and neck.

"I'm sorry, Ev, really."

"I'm not. 'Night Randy."

"Goodnight."


	9. Chapter 9

The days home have passed quickly and quietly and it's the night before they have to get back on the road for the next show. Cody and Ted sit cuddled on Ted's goofy green couch in the dark watching The Italian Job.

"Hey Teddy?" Cody questions, "Would you do Mark Wahlberg?"

Ted just looks at Cody in disbelief before looking back up at the extremely attractive man on the screen. Honestly, he had never thought about another man like that until he had begun his physical relationship with Cody.

"Nah, I don't think so," Ted hugs him tighter, "I like my men lean and mean with a lisp."

Cody punches his shoulder playfully, "No really. What if I said you could?"

"Oh then I definitely would."

That draws a laugh from the younger man and Ted smiles, realizing the changes that Cody has gone through these last weeks. It's actually refreshing to see Cody acting like his old self. And for once, Ted and Cody are able to enjoy a calm existence.

Unlike Randy, who had woken up that morning in a panic. He sees Evan sleeping peacefully up against him, and the younger man is so still that for a second Randy wonders if he is even breathing. He is, of course, but Randy is in such a state from last night that he isn't thinking clearly. All he can do is look at Evan and every little mark or discoloration on his pale skin is practically accusing Randy.

First is the dark red love bite on Evan's neck. The makeup people aren't going to like it, but at least for the show they should be able to cover it up. As for the rest of the time, Randy can only cringe at the thought of the looks and questions that he knows the small man is going to get.

He slides the blanket down, exposing Evan's chest and then further and further until there they are, glaring back at him almost angrily. There on Evan's hips, are two distinct hand shaped bruises. It's been hours and they've already turned a sickening purplish-black color and Randy has seen enough bruises in his life to know that's he's done a significant amount of damage to the young man. The flesh is even a bit swollen and raised. One light touch, Randy can already tell, would be extremely painful.

Randy recognizes that he should at least wake Evan and put some ice on the bruises. He places a large hand on Evan's shoulder and rocks him gently.

"Evan?" he says quietly, then hesitates, "Ev . . . Baby, wake up."

Evan's brown eyes flicker open sleepily and he rolls onto his back, groaning a little. The sight of him naked and sprawled out, nearly makes Randy forget what he's trying to do before the bruises suck in his attention again. He pulls the blanket back up over Evan's lower half.

"Randy?" he rubs at his eyes, "What's wrong?"

"Look at your hips!"

Evan peeks under the blanket then sighs, "So that's what hurt so much."

"I'm gonna go get you ice," Randy is about to jump from the bed, but Evan grabs his wrist and pulls Randy back up against his side. He turns his head to the side and kisses Randy sweetly, smiling when the older man responds. Then Evan pulls his lips away.

"Good morning," he whispers.

Randy can't help but smile, "You're something else, you know that right?"

"I know," Evan runs a hand down Randy's chest, "And you were amazing last night. I can't wait to do it again."

Randy actually blushes fiercely, then processes what Evan has said, "You . . . you really want to be with me? Especially after what happened?"

"You're a great guy, Randy. You have to stop doubting yourself. I know things got a little out of control, but . . . I know you would never hurt me intentionally."

Randy just leans over to kiss Evan again and their hands roam each other's bodies, but as soon as a hand brushes one of Evan's bruises, he hisses in pain.

"Fuck," Randy berates himself for forgetting, "Let me get you some ice now."

He stands from the bed, pulling on a pair of briefs before heading down to the kitchen. He returns a moment later with a glass of water in one hand and two bags of ice each wrapped in a hand towel. He places them both on the bedside table, then heads into the bathroom to grab some aspirin.

He comes back out and offers the pills and water to Evan, who accepts them gratefully. After placing the glass aside, Randy lies back down next to Evan and holds an ice pack to each hip. The smaller man tenses briefly, then relaxes into the bed, sighing in contentment. Randy kisses him once more before settling down also.

And they just lie there, happily spending their last day of time off together.

It's not long before all the superstars are back at hotels, readying themselves for a week full of shows ahead. John and Randy sit cross legged on the same bed in John's room, facing each other.

"You what?"

"You heard me," Randy sighs, "Don't be a jerk."

"Okay, okay," John puts his hands up in surrender, "But you've never even been interested in guys before and you just . . . slept with him? Just like that?"

"It wasn't even like that!" Randy falters, ". . . fine, it was totally like that. John, I'm freaking out here!"

"Why? You're both consenting adults. I mean, he doesn't really look like one but-"

"Don't even joke about that. He's not that young. And for your information, I just had sex with a guy for the first time and, to tell you the truth, it got . . . well I got a little rough with him."

John immediately looks concerned, "You didn't force-"

"No! Nothing like that!" Randy's appalled at the thought, "Things just got out of control. I felt so bad I hurt him and he was just so calm and . . . damn it I didn't even use a condom! I could have put us both at risk!"

John just seems alarmed at Randy's anguish and total lack of judgment, "Well obviously you weren't thinking at all. I want to say that I'm glad you two got together, but man, you really screwed up. And you said he's okay?"

"He was so relaxed about it; it was unbelievable! He's too good for me. What does he even like about me?!"

"Randy, calm down," John admonishes, "This could be good for you . . . just, please try and control yourself. If not for yourself, at least do it for Evan."

Unbeknownst to Randy, Evan has sought out someone that he thinks knows Randy the best: Cody. He knocks on the door to the hotel room nervously, hoping Cody will be there and will talk to him.

The door opens; Cody is standing in the doorway looking down at him, "Evan? What's up?"

"I . . . I was wondering if I could talk to you about Randy."

"Umm, sure. Come on in," Cody gestures and then shuts the door once Evan has entered the room. Evan seats himself in a desk chair with a wince and Cody sits down on the corner of the bed nearest to him.

"So, what about Randy?"

"Actually . . . well . . . we had sex."

Cody looks shocked for a moment before recovering, "He did that to your neck? I can't believe it. He never told me he's gay."

"Yeah, I mean, I'm pretty sure it was a first time thing for him and it went kind of weird, but I figured you'd be okay with it because your with Ted and I just didn't know who else to talk to-"

"Wait," Cody throws a hand up to stop Evan, "You know I'm with Ted?"

Evan nods like it's the most obvious thing in the world, "Cause that night after RAW and that thing with Hunter and you and Ted were being all cuddly and I just assumed, you know?"

"Okay," Cody takes a deep breath, "So you slept with Randy. You're dating now?"

"We agreed to try it out."

"Is that what you wanted to tell me or . . ."

"Well I was wondering if you could tell me about Randy," Evan scoots the chair closer, "Like, I kind of get his personality and I think he's awesome and everything, but I really don't iknow/i him. And I know his birthday is coming soon, so I was wondering about like, little things, you know? Like music and movies he likes, sports he watches, does he have any pets; things like that."

Cody can't help but smile. He realizes that while he's been struggling with his own problems a lot recently, the rest of the world is still going on around him. Now Evan is asking him about relationship advice? Because he's dating Randy? It's just funny.

"Umm, okay. Let's see . . ."

He proceeds to tell Evan everything he can think of, which turns out to be more than he thought. It actually doesn't surprise him though; Randy has been looking after him for as long as he can remember and it's nice that they know so much about each other.

". . . and he's always wanted like, a puppy or something, but since he's not home for so long and no one else lives with him it would be hard to take care of a pet."

Evan's eyes light up at this little tidbit and Cody knows that he's just gotten an idea for something.

"Thanks Cody, you've been a ton of help."

"Well, you're welcome."

"And I just wanted to say, I know you've been going through some rough times lately, but I think that you and Ted are really precious together and everything's going to work out."

"Precious?" Cody laughs, "I don't think that's the word I would use. We're still kind of messed up."

Evan's face falls, "But you love each other, right?"

"Yeah, we do. Don't give me that; I see where you going with this. I know I'm lucky for what I've got."

"Good, cause I'm not in the mood to give a lecture. I was wondering, can I hang out here for a bit? Randy was kind of rough with me and I know that if I go back to our room, we're probably not gonna be able to keep our hands off each other."

Cody scrunches his nose, "Okay, I didn't need to know that."

Evan just smiles and settles further down in the chair; it's going to be a long week.


	10. Chapter 10

It's Monday, early in the day, and Cody has made the decision to go see Dr. Bennett by himself. For once he has something that he really wants to talk about. So after asking Randy to keep Ted occupied, Cody and the doctor meet in the lobby before heading outside to a small garden the hotel keeps. There's a bench to sit on and they're relatively alone since it is the hottest part of the day and not many people have ventured outside.

"So Cody, there's a reason you didn't want Ted here today."

"It's just . . ." Cody pauses to take a deep breath. He's been feeling better, more confident lately and has been thinking more and more about his relationship with Ted, "I really want mine and Ted's relationship to . . . progress, but I don't know what to do about it."

Dr. Bennett gives him a knowing look, "You two seem to be very much in love. You're talking about the physical aspect of your relationship, correct?"

Cody blushes, "Yeah, I just feel like I can't really be with him completely if I haven't ibeen/i with him. And I really want that, especially since I've been feeling more like myself since we started this thing we have and talking to you but . . . I'm still scared."

"What are you scared of? Ted?"

"No! Of course not," Cody cringes.

"I just wanted to ask," the older man tries to calm him, "It would be understandable considering your past."

Cody sighs, "I know Ted would never hurt me. And I know that if we do . . . have sex it's going to be really different and probably painful, but it's myself that I don't trust really. What if I do something wrong? What if I freak out and Ted doesn't want me anymore?"

"This might seem like an awkward solution," Dr. Bennett starts, "but if you're really so worried about it, you and Ted should talk about it. Let him know how you're feeling and when you're ready to go ahead and do something."

"I feel like that would be so weird."

"I know, but it might be your best option. But truthfully, I don't think you're giving yourself or Ted enough credit. I usually don't want people to know this, but I observe the wrestlers backstage on occasion."

Cody's eyes widen.

"I see how you two interact with each other. Ted has voluntarily entered this battle that you have been fighting because he genuinely has strong feelings for you. He's not going to drop you at the first sign of trouble. You need to know that you always have him to rely on, no matter the situation. And you have to remember that there are going to be times when he needs you."

"You really think that?"

"A relationship is about two people supporting each other. I can almost guarantee that you will not always be the weak one; the one that needs help from the other. You and Ted have such a good connection, it's already stronger than couples that have been living together for years, that's why I think you two are really going to be perfect together; perfect for each other."

Cody just tries to think about exactly what Dr. Bennett is telling him. It's important, he decides, because not only has he not been in a relationship with Ted before, he hasn't every felt this way about ianyone/i.

"Thanks," Cody smiles, finally understanding what he has to do.

Ted is wandering the arena a few hours before the show, but soon decides that he should just head for the locker room, maybe to relax for a bit before he has to change. This arena has provided less room than usual for the superstars and the majority of them are going to be changing and stashing their stuff in one room.

He pushes the door open and is met with a very confusing and well . . . hot sight. Randy is seated on a folding chair in his street clothes and Evan, dressed the same, is sitting on his lap, facing the older man and straddling his large thighs.

They're engaged in an intense lip lock, tongues and lips and teeth connecting, their chests pressing together, and hands are roaming everywhere. And while most of his blood is rushing from his brain to his groin, Ted can't help but think that it would be amazing if he and Cody could be so carefree in their relationship to be making out in the locker room before the show. Then his next thought is: Why are Randy and Evan making out at all?

Ted clears his throat and the two other men look at him, startled, "You guys should cut that out, everyone else is bound to show up soon."

They both just blush and part quickly, each adjusting themselves in their pants before moving towards their bags and rifling through for their ring attire. It's not long before the other men start filtering in and Ted wishes Cody was here, knowing that he probably isn't going to show up until relatively soon before the show starts.

Everybody is starting to change and Ted pays no attention to anyone else until he hears basically a wolf whistle. He turns, puzzled, to see that Evan has stripped to his underwear to change, but hasn't gotten past that yet because Chavo and Chris Masters are leering at him.

"I told you that boy takes it up the ass," Chris sneers, his comment making Chavo laugh, "Looks like somebody got a little rough with him. Maybe he didn't give it up easily enough."

Ted flinches at the harsh words, at first wondering where this is coming from, but then he sees the bruises adorning Evan's hips, visible above the waistband of his boxer briefs. They're vaguely hand shaped, blackish towards the middle and sickly yellow color on the edges. He wonders where they came from, feeling afraid for the smaller man.

"Why don't you guys back off?" Montel interjects, but all it does is earn him a nasty look from the two men.

"Aw, look at him defending the little faggot," Chavo laughs again, putting on an innocent voice, "Maybe I just want a piece for myself."

He actually has the gall to move towards Evan and grab his ass, eliciting a shriek from the younger man. In a heartbeat, Randy is standing in between Chavo and Evan, glowering at the older wrestler.

"Keep your fucking hands off of him!" Randy shouts causing both Chavo and Chris to take a few steps back.

"Look man," Chris puts him hand up in surrender, "We were just messing around."

"That's not messing around, that's sexual harassment," Randy growls, "Don't you ever come near him again, you understand?"

"What are you going to do about it?" Chavo smirks, knowing that he has The Masterpiece right behind him.

Randy doesn't even need to say anything because immediately Jack is by his side, further blocking Evan from view, "Whatever we have to do."

His size at least evens the odds, but Chris just raises an eyebrow, like he can take Randy and Jack by himself if he wanted to. The confident look fades off his face quickly however when the other two men are joined by Paul, who towers over Chavo and just glares at Chris, not needing to say anything to get his point across.

The two men know that they are beaten and adorned in their ring gear, they slink out of the room, muttering obscenities. Randy spins around to face Evan, who has sunken down onto a bench and is visibly shaking. He kneels in front of the younger man, not caring what the other men in the room think of him.

"Are you okay?" he says gently.

Evan takes deep breath, then shakes his head to Randy's disappointment, "You'll be okay. They're not going to do anything to you. I promise."

Randy jumps a bit when he feels a hand fall down on his shoulder, but relaxes when he turns to see Ted standing behind him.

"Can I talk to you outside?"

Randy hesitates, not wanting to leave Evan alone, but he trusts the others in the locker room to keep an eye on him in case those assholes come back. So he agrees, and after promising Evan he'll be right back, he makes quick eye contact with Paul, who nods back at him in a silent vow that he won't let anything happen to the younger man in Randy's absence.

Out in the hall, Ted looks at Randy incredulously, "I didn't know you were going out with Evan. I didn't even know you were gay!"

Randy just shrugs and smiles sheepishly, "What can I say? He's very persuasive."

"Okay, I didn't need to hear that. But honestly, Randy, did you do that to him?"

"Yeah," the older man quiets a little, "But it was an accident Ted, and I felt so bad and he forgave me. I swear I didn't mean to hurt him."

Ted sighs, "I believe you Randy. I was just worried about him, that's all. We're all going to have to keep a really close eye on him now. If Chavo would do that with all of us there . . . I don't even want to think about it."

"I know," Randy face sets in anger, determined to protect his new lover.

They're silent for a moment and then Ted is surprised when Cody sidles down the hall quietly and then huddles up to his side. Ted smiles and wraps an arm around Cody's shoulders.

"Hey Baby, I'm so glad to see you," he moves in the kiss Cody on the cheek, but his heart warms when Cody turns his head so their lips meet in a simple kiss.

"Same here, Teddy. I saw Chavo and Chris practically steaming down the hall. What happened?"

Randy flinches at the names, "They were harassing Evan. Chavo groped him; called him some nasty names."

Cody frowns, "Is he okay? Did you do anything to them Randy?"

"No, he's not okay. And there was no violence, just some . . . intimidation."

"Wait a second," Ted interjects, "Code, you knew about the two of them?"

"Yeah," Cody pouts, "I never told you? I'm sorry, Teddy-Bear."

Randy fake gags, "These pet names are killing me. Can I get back in there to my terrified boyfriend please?"

All three of them re-enter the room, only to see Jack trying to comfort a now crying Evan Bourne. As soon as the large blonde man sees them, he stands to leave room so that Randy and Cody can sit down on either side of the shaken wrestler. Randy slides an arm around Evan's middle and pulls him closer while Cody whispers words of reassurance.

"You can't let them bother you, Ev. You're stronger than that. We're all here for you. No one's going to hurt you."

It's these words that are not only getting to Evans ears, but Ted's as well as he stands nearby, beginning to change his clothes. For a second it amazes him that these words are coming from Cody and he actually feels his eyes tearing up at the thought of how far Cody has come since the start of this entire fiasco.

The rest of the time before the show is spent in silence as the rest of the superstars and divas arrive. John enters and Randy immediately pulls him aside to tell him what has happened. Hunter shows up and right away Ted places himself in front of Cody. The amount of tension in the room is insane.

Thankfully the show goes off without a hitch, but all of the wrestlers have been asked to remain at the arena after the show to hear an announcement from Mr. McMahon. All of the superstars and divas have convened in a media room and everyone quiets down when Vince makes his entrance.

He takes a deep breath before getting straight to the point, "I regret to inform you all that due to information that has recently been brought to my attention . . . Ric Flair is going to be removed from the World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Fame."

There is a collective gasp around the room, but the it suddenly goes silent again when Hunter jumps up from his chair and practically screams at the chairman, "This is bullshit! I know why you're doing this Vince and it's all a fucking lie!"

Vince's face remains stoic, "I know you all may not understand, but this decision is final. You are all free to leave now."

The majority of the wrestlers leave, murmuring amongst themselves, but Hunter and John remain.

"No Hunter," Vince preempts whatever the large man is going to say, "I'm not undoing this. I don't care if you don't believe what happened, but you're not thinking clearly."

Hunter just steps alarmingly close to his father-in-law and John decides that he needs to step in.

"Why don't you just back off Hunter? This doesn't concern you."

"Yeah," Hunter scoffs, "because this has so much to do with you."

John just gets even closer to Hunter, diverting his attention from their boss, "Listen, I'm not going to let you hurt people. Ric made his own choice all those years ago when he did what he did. And Cody is still suffering because of it; I'm not going to let you make it even worse."

All Hunter can do is look back and forth between John and Vince, knowing that for now, he's been defeated.


	11. Chapter 11

The next night at a house show, Legacy has a match against the Colons, which, thankfully, is devoid of any plotline. There's no need to worry about talking to the crowd or anything along those lines.

Ted stands in his corner and watches in amazement as Cody executes a beautiful moonsault from the top turnbuckle. The bend of his lithe, tan body has Ted thinking thoughts that have no place in the ring. But honestly, he can't help it. He wants to be with Cody so badly it hurts but he just can't bring himself to try and go farther with the younger man.

He wonders if he being selfish; making a bigger thing out of sex then it actually should be. It's not like that though, Ted shakes his head a bit, he really just wants to be as close to Cody as he can. It's a snap back to reality when Cody slaps his forearm for a tag and he is thrust into the action.

In the end, Legacy is victorious and heads to the back to collect their belongings before heading back to their hotel. The drive is a bit long and silent for a while, until Cody speaks up from the passenger seat.

"Teddy?"

"Yeah?"

"I . . . I want to be with you."

Ted glances over at him confusedly before turning his eyes back to the road, "You are with me, Baby. I love you."

Cody takes a deep breath, it's now or never he decides, "I know that. I love you too, but I want to be with you . . . completely."

Ted nearly slams into the car in front of them, then quickly regains his composure, "You mean . . . are you sure?"

"I'm pretty sure," Cody places a hand on Ted's warm thigh, "I mean, I'd always be a little nervous whenever our first time is . . . but you'll take care of me, right?"

The older man nearly seizes up again at the innocence in Cody's voice, "Of course I will. You know I would do anything for you Code. Why don't we finish this conversation at the hotel, okay?"

Cody nods and smiles before letting his hand slip down Ted's leg to his knee until he runs out of purchase and pulls his arm back onto his own lap.

States away, Hunter has hurried to see Ric, wondering if Vince told the older man of the news first and how he was reacting to it. Ric just sighs when he answers the door, knowing why his friend is there and appears to be so angry.

"I don't understand it Ric!" Hunter vents, closing the front door behind him and following Ric in the sitting room.

"Usually Vince McMahon would give an explanation," Flair frowns, "but he didn't. I can't argue with him Hunter. He has absolute authority on this point."

Hunter laughs roughly, "Oh I have your explanation."

The blond man just looks at him, confused at this turn of events, but just waits for Hunter to continue.

"Cody Runnels told Dibiase and Orton that when he was a kid . . . you raped him!" he barks out another laugh, "Can you believe that shit?!"

Hunter pauses when Ric reveals a small smile, "It's true."

"What?!" Hunter jumps up from his seat on the couch, putting some distance between them, "Don't fuck with me Ric. I can't take it."

"I'm not, Hunt. That boy was the tightest I've ever had," he full out grins, "His father was a real thorn in my side and when I saw little Cody wandering the halls backstage by himself . . . I couldn't help myself. I figured it be a perfect opportunity to fuck with Virgil and getting some action while I was at it didn't hurt."

Hunter can practically feel his heart breaking, "You sick bastard. I defended you to them . . . shit, I hurt Cody because I thought he was trying to ruin you!"

"Well he was, but he actually had a reason to," Ric scowls, "What's wrong with you? Are you upset I never told you . . . or that you never got a piece?"

The larger man recoils in disgust, "That's revolting! How can you be so fucking calm about raping a kid! I'm going to make your name mud, you asshole. I'm glad you career is going to be destroyed and I hope you rot in hell!"

Hunter storms from the house, for once leaving his ignorance behind.

Back at Cody and Ted's hotel, they lay cuddled up in bed, already stripped to their underwear, but so far are just lying there innocently holding each other. Cody nuzzles his face into Ted's neck and inhales deeply, enjoying the scent of his lover's freshly showered skin. He lightly drags a finger over Ted's smooth chest and stomach, watching amusedly as the muscles twitch and jump under the skin.

"Teddy . . . please?"

Ted rolls to face the younger man with a concerned look on his face, "I need to know that this is what you want, Baby. You've been through so much and . . ."

To Cody's surprise Ted's voice seems to be choking up a bit, unshed tears gleaming in his eyes as his sentence trails off.

"iWe've/i been through so much," Cody plays the comforter now, stroking Ted's cheek slowly, "This could be amazing for us Teddy. I think we both want this. I think we both ineed/i this."

In response, Ted just tilts his head down and presses his lips to Cody's. His tongue snakes out and rubs Cody's lips, begging for entrance, which the younger man eagerly allows. They kiss deeply, reveling in each other's touch before pulling away.

"Cody, I'm going to make this perfect for you. I promise," Ted's blue eyes connect with his and the emotion in the room is so suffocating that they practically jump back on one another, their lips sealing together again. It's not long before they're in a position their used too, Cody on top of Ted, rubbing their erections together through boxer briefs.

There is not nearly enough skin on skin so they both quickly shed their underwear, resuming their positions side by side.

"Oh Teddy," Cody moans out as Ted simultaneously sucks on his neck and brushes his fingers over a hardened nipple, "I want to feel you."

Ted pulls away and reaches for lube and condoms that he has had stashed away in his bag, hoping that this occasion would arise.

"Lay on your back Baby," Ted croons, "We're gonna take this slow, okay?"

He pops the cap on the lube as Cody watches in fascination as Ted coats one long finger and Cody parts his legs a bit, trying to entice the older man.

But then, Ted stops.

"Teddy?" Cody asks fearfully, "What's wrong?"

Ted sits back on his heels and drops the bottle, wiping his hand on his bare leg. He looks away before whispering, "I can't do this."

Cody freezes, "What? But – but Teddy . . ."

"I can't Baby," Ted stands and hurriedly pulls his clothes on, "It has nothing to do with you Code, I just . . . I'm not ready for this."

And with that he flees the room, leaving Cody desperately turned on, alone, and confused.


	12. Chapter 12

*THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL*

Cody wanders the halls of the arena during training, heading back to the locker room and trying to understand just what is going on with Ted. Seriously, he wants Ted to fuck him, and at this point he doesn't see anything wrong with that.

Does Ted not want him? Is that what this is all about? He hasn't spoken to the older man since that night and Cody is desperately missing him.

His train of thought is interrupted when Hunter blocks his view of the rest of the hall, and Cody jumps before realizing who it is and putting on a tough façade.

"Before you run screaming or hit me I just have to tell you something, kid," Hunter starts, noticing Cody looking warily at him, "And I know you have no reason to trust me, but . . . just hear me out okay?"

Cody just remains silent, trying to keep a stoic look on his face.

"I went to talk to Ric," he observes the younger man flinch, "and he told me what he did you."

Cody can't believe it, "B-b-but . . . why?"

Hunter cringes at the memory of the older man's attitude, "He thought I wouldn't care, I guess; saying it like he was so proud of what he'd done. But it doesn't matter. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. Sorry I hurt you; that I didn't believe you."

"Well . . ." Cody looks thoughtful, "Thanks, I guess. And . . . I kind of understand. That's a part of the reason why Ted didn't tell Randy that he had done it."

Hunter nods, "That makes sense; why he blew up the way he did. But really, I just wanted you to know that you don't have to worry about me."

"Thanks, man. I'll . . . see ya around?"

"Yeah, see ya kid."

Cody continues along, smiling a bit, feeling better and better all the time. An angry Hunter is just one more thing that Cody is glad that he doesn't have to worry about. It's been a while since his last night terror and the only thing that has brought him down is this thing with Ted.

He finally gets to the locker room and his smile fades a bit when he sees Ted and Evan looking at something that Evan has in a cardboard box on his lap. They're both smiling and Ted looks so relaxed; so unlike their last time together.

"Cody, look what I got Randy for his birthday!"

Evan looks so excited, and Cody can't help but move towards the two to peek into the box. The sight inside returns the grin back to his face.

"Do you think he'll like it?" Evan asks nervously.

"He'll love it," Ted interjects, stepping around Evan's legs to embrace Cody from behind.

He whispers, "I'm sorry, Baby. We'll talk, okay?"

Cody nods, relieved that him and Ted are going to be able to communicate. He really wants to know what the problem is, but he would feel uneasy pushing Ted to tell him. Now knowing they are on good terms, Cody turns his attention back to Evan.

"When are you going to give it to him?"

Evan frowns, "Him and John were supposed to meet us here ten minutes ago."

The two aforementioned men walk in at that moment, fresh out of a workout, and joking with each other.

The smallest man jumps to his feet, carefully cradling the box in his hands, and approaches Randy.

"I got you a birthday present."

"Really?" Randy raises and eyebrow after using a towel to wipe sweat from his face. That was sweet of Evan, considering they have only been dating a little while. He looks down in the box that Evan is holding in his outstretched hands and practically beams.

Inside is a small, orange tabby kitten, sleeping quietly, curled into a little ball.

Randy reaches a large hand, as big as the cat itself, to pet it and it stirs. Opening one green blearily, it just looks at him before nuzzling its face into his palm.

"It's adorable, Ev. Thank you so much," Randy leans over the box and pecks the younger man on the lips, "I always wanted a pet."

"Yeah," Evan flushes red from the praise, "Cats can be left alone for a while so I figured it be a good pet cause we're on the road, and he was just so cute I couldn't leave him at the shelter."

John almost squeals like a little girl and scoops the kitten out of the box when he hears what they are talking about. He cradles it in his big hands and makes strange cooing noises at it while the other men watch amusedly.

"So what's his name?" Randy pulls Evan towards him, causing the younger man to drop the box and he collides with Randy's firm chest. He sighs contentedly and they just hold onto each other.

"He doesn't have one yet," Evan looks a little hesitant, "I figured we could pick one . . . together."

"Sounds good to me Baby," Randy leans in for another kiss, this time a much deeper one. They are totally engrossed with one another until Ted lets out a meaningful cough.

They part, Randy with a smug smile and Evan with flushed cheeks.

"So, what should we call him?"

"Well," Evan stares at the cat, then giggles, "He looks like Stephen."

Randy turns to look at the cat and even John stops his weird noises to examine the cat more closely.

"That Sheamus guy?" John asks, "From ECW?"

"Uh huh."

"You want to call him Sheamus?" Randy looks down at Evan with a questioning look.

"Only if you want to."

"Well I like it," Randy chuckles as the cat swipes at John's nose, "It seems to fit him."

Evan and Randy continue to smile at each other and look into each other's eyes, while John, Cody, and Ted try not to stare at them to obviously.

"Hey," Randy suddenly quips, "Do you think you guys could keep an eye on Sheamus for a little while? Just smuggle him into the hotel room or something?"

Cody snatches the tiny thing from John before he never gives it back and it mews at him happily, "Sure, but why?"

Randy hefts Evan up and drapes him over his shoulder, laughing out when the younger man protests, "Because I'm taking Ev here back to the hotel and I am going to do unspeakable things to him."

He pats Evan on the backside gently and grabs his own bag before carrying his squirming boyfriend from the room, a lust filled smile on the smaller man's face.

"I don't understand how ithat/i happened," John gestures towards the door, indicating the couple with a shake of his head.

"Why question it?" Ted scratches the kitten under the chin in Cody's hands and it purrs appreciatively, "It's a good thing."

John nods in agreement, "I know, it's just . . . life is so weird."

At that moment, Cody's cell rings, bringing the men out of their deep thoughts about their lives. He passes the kitten off to Ted, who holds him gingerly as if he might break him, then checks his caller ID.

"Hi Mom!"

John and Ted keep quiet, as not to interrupt the conversation.

"Yeah, I know we have some time. I'll definitely come home to visit."

"I miss Dad too. It'll be good to see everyone."

"You want Ted to come also?" He looks up at the older man and they share a confused look, "He'll probably want to go see his family."

"Oh, okay. I'll tell him. Okay Mom."

Ted and John have no idea what Cody's mother is saying to him, but he seems to be getting more and more distressed.

"You don't have to – seriously I don't need – I can't – Fine."

"Yeah. Love you. Bye."

Cody hits the end button and drops the phone back on his bag, before sinking down onto a bench and letting his head fall in his hands.

Ted hands the wriggling Sheamus back to John now and sits down next to Cody, wrapping and arm around the younger man's shoulders.

"What's going on?"

Cody lets his hands fall and looks to Ted at his side, "You're parents are going away so my parents want you to come to visit with me in two weeks."

"We'll that's not that bad," Ted frowns, "Unless you don't want me to go."

"That's not it at all. I want you to . . . but my mom told me something else."

"What was it?" John asks eagerly and both older men look at him expectantly, waiting for an answer.

Cody grabs his hair in frustration, "She has a girl that she wants me to meet; the daughter of a friend."

Ted's jaw drops to the floor, but John just scoffs, "So tell her you're taken."

Cody and Ted both shoot him nasty looks and recoils, trying to shield himself with the miniscule cat, "Fine, don't. What iare/i you going to do?"

The couple share a look. They have absolutely no idea.


End file.
